STORY: Tea industry drives rural revitalization in Metok in China's Xizang
SHOOTING TIME: May 3, 2024
DATELINE: May 4, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:10
LOCATION: LHASA, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY/SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of tea plantations
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YUAN CHUNHUA, Owner of a local store
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): YU JIACHUN, Local official

STORYLINE:

Tea cultivation has helped boost rural revitalization in Geling Village in China's Xizang in recent years.

Since the beginning of spring, villagers have been busy picking tea leaves in the plantations.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YUAN CHUNHUA, Owner of a local store
"Tea is hailed as the 'golden leaf' of Metok. Today it's raining. Actually, it rains regularly here. They all go to pick tea leaves and they're not afraid of hard work. They go early in the morning, and some even wear headlamps to go tea picking."

Geling was once inaccessible due to its rugged terrain and dense forests.

However, the opening of the Metok Highway in 2013 significantly improved connectivity and opened up opportunities for economic growth.

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): YU JIACHUN, Local official
"Tea cultivation trials in Metok began in 2011, and the results were very good. With the strong support of a working group that was here offering paired assistance, we started large-scale trial cultivation from 2012. Currently, there are 103 tea plantations, with a total cultivation area of 19,000 mu (about 1,267 hectares)."

From 2015 to 2023, over 900,000 kg of tea had been harvested in Metok, generating around 40 million yuan of revenue for local residents.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Lhasa, China.
(XHTV)